Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) Upgraded to “Buy” by Jefferies Financial Group

Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report released on Wednesday morning, MarketBeat Ratings reports. They currently have $156.00 price objective on the specialty retailer’s stock, up from their prior price objective of $148.00.

A number of other analysts have also recently commented on WSM. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an outperform rating and set a $170.00 price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research report on Monday, August 19th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $158.00 to $145.00 and set an equal weight rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $137.50 to $155.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 4th. Barclays cut their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $232.00 to $116.00 and set an underweight rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $150.00 to $147.00 and set an outperform rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $140.50.

Williams-Sonoma Trading Up 3.1 %

Shares of WSM opened at $134.33 on Wednesday. Williams-Sonoma has a 12-month low of $69.20 and a 12-month high of $174.26. The stock has a market cap of $17.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.50, a PEG ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 1.74. The company has a 50-day moving average of $142.06 and a two-hundred day moving average of $144.05.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 22nd. The specialty retailer reported $1.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $1.79 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.81 billion. Williams-Sonoma had a return on equity of 51.57% and a net margin of 14.29%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.56 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Williams-Sonoma will post 7.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Williams-Sonoma

In other news, CEO Laura Alber sold 40,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, July 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.45, for a total value of $6,258,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,070,956 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $167,551,066.20. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, CEO Laura Alber sold 40,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.45, for a total transaction of $6,258,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,070,956 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $167,551,066.20. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Karalyn Smith sold 11,100 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $134.66, for a total value of $1,494,726.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 15,150 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,040,099. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Williams-Sonoma

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of WSM. Private Advisor Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 132.3% during the fourth quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 3,276 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $661,000 after purchasing an additional 13,425 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 47.4% during the 4th quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 85,323 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $17,216,000 after buying an additional 27,457 shares during the period. QRG Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 8.8% during the 4th quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 5,692 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,149,000 after buying an additional 460 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 970,737 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $195,882,000 after buying an additional 23,918 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Forum Financial Management LP purchased a new position in Williams-Sonoma in the 4th quarter valued at about $250,000. 99.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Williams-Sonoma Company Profile

Williams-Sonoma, Inc operates as an omni-channel specialty retailer of various products for home. It offers cooking, dining, and entertaining products, such as cookware, tools, electrics, cutlery, tabletop and bar, outdoor, furniture, and a library of cookbooks under the Williams Sonoma Home brand, as well as home furnishings and decorative accessories under the Williams Sonoma lifestyle brand; and furniture, bedding, lighting, rugs, table essentials, and decorative accessories under the Pottery Barn brand.